Ultralight Backpacking for Lightweights; Chapter 2, Change your Shoes!

Dan,

I’ve liked your 3 videos so far.  I watched this one on shoes, having switched first to running shoes and then, with feelings of great joy and vindication (that a manufacturer finally understood) to the Nike Lava Dome when it was introduced in 1982, not expecting to learn anything.  You were giving most of the same arguments for low-cut hikers and against traditional boots that I have been for many decades.

But then you mentioned that trail shoes don’t come with inserts anymore.  And I thought, “No, mine have inserts!” but thought I’d look.  You were right – my low-cut Merrells are nicely finished on the inside, their logo is there, it’s not exposed seams and the structure of the sole like shoes used to look like without their insole, but there was no insole.  And I have been having issues with my feet feeling bruised after 10 miles walking around a city on concrete sidewalks or 15+ miles in a day on the trail and assumed it was due to being older and heavier than I used to be.  $7.99 at Walmart for a pair of insoles and now my footfalls feel SO much softer and gentler.

So thanks for that tip.

I remember in the 1970s me and my backpacking buddies used Tennis Shoes of all varieties and especially liked the old Nike Approach hiking boots—a precursor to your trail runners.

RIDDLE:  Why are they called Trail Runners?  Because backpackers are trying to run down the trail and get into a town as soon as possible.  Ha ha ha.

The Full Leather boot vs the Light Tennis Shoe debate can be solved in some sense by using boots midway in the spectrum, something like Asolo Fugitives.  More support for heavier pack loads for longer trips.

Two problems I see with trail runners (from backpackers who are using them with me on our treks)—1) Every shallow puddle gets sucked into the shoe —ergo wet socks.  This becomes irritating on a perfectly fine day when you have dry socks and have to wade a 3-4 inch small stream.  ZAP your socks are wet.  Dew/frost on the grass also quickly wets it out.  This is a big problem at 10F during a winter trip.

2)—Poor tread lugs.  I see guys slipping all over the place with these kind of shoes—because the shoes generally have no lug soles—which are vital in keeping a person upright and not sliding around.  And trails here in the Southeast are MUDDY.

But heck I’ve used tennis shoes for years on my backpacking trips—even converse things.  Once spent a season backpacking in Birkenstock sandals—until the cork disintegrated.

David — thanks for that and I’m so glad it was helpful for you! I appreciate your thoughtfulness in sharing that story/detail.

Tipi — the problem with slipperiness is one reason I insist on Vibram soles as I’ve found them to have excellent grip. Mud is certainly a problem with any low shoe and I’ve come close to walking out of mine many times when the bog overpowered my loose laces.

I don’t like to add insoles to my shoes. They tend to take up too much of the space. They make my feet ride high and my heels pop out the back. I tend to take the insoles out completely or replace them with really thin ones I’ve either bought or made myself out of thin foam. I use the thin ones to protect my feet from abrasion against the stitches that a lot of shoes have inside. The perfect shoe lets my feet ride low inside without rubbing against my ankle.

Tipi, I’m in N GA. My Salomon Ultra 3s have excellent traction, and I do a lot of steep slope bushwhacking. I’ve had Brooks and Altras that had much less grip, though the cureent Altra Timp Trail is quite good.

As for water crossings, thin wool socks dry out pretty well in moderate temps. Cooler weather the Rocky Goretex socks are needed. Or my Salomon boots.

Of note, I’ve suffered ankle sprains and torn ligaments since my teens. Always thought I needed boots. But I’ve hiked for 2 years in the SE mtns in trail shoes and I swear doing so made my ankles stronger!

Bill in Roswell

Piper: You’re right that the insoles take up volume inside the shoe. I just compensate by widening the space between the eyelets (not sure what to call that, but I mean the parts of the shoe through which the laces thread, above the tongue). I’ve found that just adding an inch or so there is plenty.

Also, the ‘heel pop’ problem can be alleviated by playing with the top eyes, bringing that part closer together, tying a bit tighter, and/or making use of the extra eye up top.

However, HYOH! :-)

I hate my shoes to be tied tight. It hurts. I like them loose like slippers. I’m not alone on this. I know others who prefer their shoes like this. They’re mostly long distance hikers.

Last summer in August, met a retired gent from Texas hiking the JMT from South to North, while hiking up to Cathedral Lakes in YNP. Ended up at the campsite next to him at Sunrise HSC.

We both had on Altra Lone Peak 3.5 trail runners.

He said his feet had been killing him for over a week and wished he had a pair of inserts.

My feet hurt and when I finished my JMT section hike, went to the ER, had a 1″+ sub-cutaneous blood cyst, in the muscle layer of the bottom of my foot. Could barely walk, doctor said to stay off my feet for a few days.

Switched back to Merrell MOAB Ventilator shoes.

1″+ sub-cutaneous blood cyst, in the muscle layer of the bottom of my foot.
Almost always due to a wide foot inside a narrow shoe. Happens all the time.
Measure your feet on a Brannock Device, and thereafter do NOT compromise on width.

Cheers

On a related note I have been seeing more weight listings in shoe spec’s. Probably a horrible thing to let a shoe’s weight steer your decision but I am bracing myself for the odd looks I get when I show up at the store with scale in hand.

I definitely notice the weight of my shoes making even a 10-mile day hike be more or less effort.  Not by a huge amount (it’s only between one low-cut hiker, maybe a stiff-soled one and another, maybe more minimal shoe), but some.  “A pound of your feet is worth 7 pounds off your back” seems in the ballpark.  How much effort would we go through to save 7 pounds off our back?

I find the trick is to select a lighter shoe that is still stiff enough for the trail I’m hiking or cushioned enough if I’m doing my miles on city sidewalks.

I travel a lot (100,000 flight miles a year) and while I’m happy to check bags on long family trips, for 1-2 night business trips, I go with a small carry-on, often just a modest book bag.  Saving a pound on the shoes in my luggage really helps.

As with all gear, important to find the ‘sweet spot’ between as light as possible, but still functional/meets your needs. If light was the only consideration, we’d all be hiking barefoot (or in the Vibram Five finger ‘shoes’).

I for one will proudly applaud Brian boldly carrying his scale into the shoe store!

Thanks Edward and Roger for sharing the “subcutaneous blood cyst.” Ouch! Thankfully, haven’t personally encountered that issue as yet.

When your shoes are too narrow for too long, you can get internal damage, leading to local bleeding.

This is what can happen. Leather outers on the shoes, wet for three+ weeks, leather breakdown, then dry weather made the leather shrink. Much grinding of the bones inside the foot. The blood pooled at the soles.

Cheers